If you’re interested in learning how your nonprofit can maximize the $10,000 monthly in-kind advertising grant from Google then a free strategy session could be exactly what you need.
Many nonprofits have heard of this incredible opportunity from Google but few really know how to make the most of it. According to Google, the average nonprofit uses $300 a month when you could be using more than that amount in a day.
If you’re just starting out or you’re not using the grant up to its potential, putting together a strategy is the next step and I’m going to talk through the questions that will help put that together.
You can do this strategy session on your own but having a Google Ads Strategist in a on the call never hurts. If you do want a free strategy session with TreeRoots sign up for your free Google Ad Grant Strategy Session. We will go through these questions so this can help you prepare. TreeRoots can also answer your questions about how your nonprofit can use the grant to further your mission.
For your strategy session we or you will want to walk through the following questions:
1. Do you have the grant already?
1a. If not, what steps do you need to qualify?
Download this checklist to learn if you qualify for the Google Ad Grant and how to apply for the Google Ad Grant.
1b. If you do, how are you using it currently?
You can start with a simple description for your account use. This 10 step guide can help you to audit your Google Ad Grant account.
2. How can the grant help you accomplish your mission?
Make sure you write this out – preferably on a Google Doc.
Is part of your mission informing the public?
The grant is a great way to do that.
Are you, like most nonprofits, looking for more financial resources?
Fundraising isn’t always easy with the grant but you can check out this video on fundraising with the Google Ad Grant:
Are you looking to grow your email list?
The grant is a great way to do that too.
Or do you want more volunteers or people to attend events or do you have a phone number to promote?
These are just some ideas. If you’re struggling here, you can go through your site and even social media posts and newsletters to help you think through what you want advertised to further your mission.
3. Who is your target audience(s) with the Ad Grant? What action(s) do you want them to take?
It’s important to write out these personas and what you want them to do. This will help focus your ad grant – including ads, keywords, landing pages, etc..
4. What motivates your target audience(s) to take these actions?
You should have some general information here already. You should have an idea about why people donate to your cause or why people attend events or why people volunteer or why people are looking for information that you provide.
Write out your initial thoughts here. This one you might want to come back to and dig in a little more – either by talking to people in your ideal audience or doing some online research.
Really understanding what motivates people can help you put together the right ads and landing pages.
5. What is this target audience(s) searching on Google?
Knowing what motivates your target audience can inform your keyword research as well. You can have a better understanding of what they are searching just by getting into their mindset a bit. There is no way you can do all the keyword research on your own without the help of a tool like the Google Keyword Planner or Ubersuggest, but you can start this by writing out some keyword ideas based on the information you already put together.
6. What is your competition doing for promotion?
Ultimately, you should focus on your nonprofit and your target audience. But I like to take at least a quick look at the competition for reference. You can check on SpyFu if they are using Google Ads and even see some ad ideas. Also, you should also take a look around their website or on social media. Keep in mind that you don’t want to blow up the work you’ve done so far. But a few minutes of research might give you a few more ideas before finalizing your strategy.
7. What are the next steps and who will be involved?
If you have the ad grant, then it might be time for an account audit. You can sign up for basic account audit for free, there is also a guide for a more advanced audit or you can hire TreeRoots for an advanced audit. Learn more about a Google Ad Grant audit.
If you don’t have the grant, again you need to understand the next steps to take you there and who will help take you there. You can hire a digital agency like TreeRoots to manage the Ad Grant or there’s a number of guides out there that can help too. On this free strategy call TreeRoots can walk you through this too for free.
Also, if you have defined a number of audiences and goals with the ad grant, now is the time to prioritize them. Maybe you want to focus on one audience a month and build out the landing page(s), ads and keywords.
8. How will you assess your strategy?
Last but not least, for a successful strategy, you should plan on coming back to your strategy regularly to assess how you’re doing. In the beginning, once a month could be helpful and then once every three months and then maybe biannually. So pick a target date for your next strategy session that makes sense for your nonprofit’s goals.
Conclusion
Once you have all this on a document, you should be well on your way to a Google Ad Grant strategy.
You will not only have defined what you want to accomplish with the ad grant, who you want to reach, what you want to do, but also the steps that your nonprofit needs to take to get there.
TreeRoots really want to see many more nonprofits using the Ad Grant and more than just using it, having success with it. A free strategy call at no cost to nonprofits is one way to help with that.
If you have already schedule a call, TreeRoots appreciates you taking the time to go through this video. It will make our strategy much better. If you haven’t then by heading here you can set up your free Google Ad Grant Strategy Session.